Is it cheaper to homebrew?
February 11, 2008
I posed the question to the Homebrewing group on Beer Advocate, and got so many cool responses, I figured I should post it on the beer buzz blog. Maybe some of you will want to further comment. Here’s the question I presented (link below):
I get this question all the time from friends standing around my bar drinking pints of my homebrew.
I guess the price of my batches never really came into play…. “Hmm, should I spend this $40 on a couple cases of beer, or brew my own 5 gallon batch?”
I suppose the real breakdown would be to do a style comparison for what you brewed, as to how much the six pack cost, compared to the price of the batch (and time making it if you wanted to get technical). Anyone ever think much about this? How do you answer this question?
Here’s the breakdown: if I compare it to what I normally would be buying - $9.99 for a six pack of Bells. 40 pints in one 5 gal. batch, I spent $4.50 for a few pints of Two Hearted the other night, so.. $180!! 12 oz bottles, would be around 52 bottles in a 5 gal. batch - $9.99 a sixer.. around $80.
I guess if you look at it, in comparison to what you normally drink - it is cheaper. I suppose if you’re trying to match up a Natural Light - it may not be cheaper.. 
Posted in Brewing
February 12th, 2008 at 6:03 am
[...] Here’s a question for the beer afficianados: is it cheaper to homebrew or buy your favorite brews? Michigan Beer Buzz wants your comments. [...]
February 12th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Here’s my twisted logic that makes it seem like I’m getting PAID to brew and drink my beer. First, I tell myself that if I didn’t brew, I would take up golf as a hobby. (Probably not true, but that’s beside the point…) Now, if I spent a Saturday morning/afternoon golfing, it would cost anywhere from $40 to $120+ for green fees. We’ll go on the conservative side and say $50. Next factor in drinks, lunch, etc. and you’re up to $80 easy. I won’t even factor in costs such as buying new clubs. By brewing, I may be spending $30 for ingredients, but I’m SAVING $80. Therefore, when I brew I’m essentially paying myself $50 AND I’m getting 5 gallons of beer which I would value at around $80. End profit for me? $130! So even if I buy a $130 piece of brewing equipment every time I brew, I’m breaking even. And my wife brews with me, so it even counts as family time. Not bad, huh?
February 13th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Personally, I just brewed a stout to be ready for St. Patty’s, and BeerTools.com’s online recipe calculator estimated my per bottle ingredient cost at just over 50 cents a bottle. Not counting the purchase price of bottles, that’s pretty close, and less than half the price of a bottle of Guiness, assuming a $6-7 price on a sixer. Brew on…